BioDiversity

There is still some confusion over the health of the bee population in New Zealand. Some argue that bee populations are stable or increasing, while others suggest that bee populations are rapidly declining.
The short answer is...

The degree of technical wizardry involved to understand the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) legislation and its practical implications, was, and still is, draining. This combined with the Government’s early mistakes in setting...

Lubricants are an essential part of any piece of moving or rotating machinery. The applications in which lubricants are used are countless, ranging from speciality industrial compounds used in power plants to basic penetrating...

Globally, over $100 billion of inorganic nitrogen fertilisers are applied to crops and pastures every year. Between 10 and 40% of the applied N is taken up by plants. Much of the remaining 60% to 90% is returned to the...

One year ago I released the Our Forest Future report for Pure Advantage. It identified that New Zealand was facing a trend of net forest loss – and argued that we needed to turn this trend around. I called for 1.3 million...

Right now North American municipalities are suing farmers in their communities for polluting waterways with nitrogen says mixed farmer Gabe Brown. And yet there are simple techniques to prevent this happening while saving farmers...

This year during Global Entrepreneurship Week, in the spirit of celebrating all that New Zealand has to offer, Pure Advantage have teamed up with Kiwi Connect and the Edmund Hillary Fellowship to promote some of the incredible...

This year during Global Entrepreneurship Week, in the spirit of celebrating all that New Zealand has to offer, Pure Advantage have teamed up with Kiwi Connect and the Edmund Hillary Fellowship to promote some of the incredible...

This year during Global Entrepreneurship Week, in the spirit of celebrating all that New Zealand has to offer, Pure Advantage have teamed up with Kiwi Connect and the Edmund Hillary Fellowship to promote some of the incredible...

New Zealanders are being challenged to plant 4.7 million native trees next year – one for every person in the country. This is the first step in an ambitious plan to create a movement where all Kiwis come together to help...

Variety is spice of life yet when it comes to farming monocultures dominate. If farmers have one or two species growing in paddocks, how far away are they from a desert? Monocultures (single species) are notoriously...

Most people would agree that restoring and enhancing the waters of our wetlands, stream banks and shorelines is “A Good Thing” – places look nicer, bird and fish life come back and so on. But it costs money and takes time...

It is encouraging to see the Crown Research Institute Scion applying greater resources to research into our native tree species, which may eventually contribute to their more widespread establishment for both production and...

When a tree falls in an empty forest, does it make a sound?
Whatever your answer to that old philosophical chestnut, what’s obviously true is that when a tree falls in a crowded city, a lot of people hear it fall. Conversely...

Waikato dairy and beef farmer Steve Fagan was sceptical to say the least when tiny beetles were released on his farm about 25 years ago to control ragwort. “When Jim Laurenson, the local biosecurity officer, released flea...

In Western Australia, where Stanley Bellgard is from, they call Phytophthora a “Biological Bulldozer”. Catchy name, isn’t it. And Phytophthora agathidicida (formerly, PTA), more widely referred to by New Zealanders as...

Although being good looking and tasty, the banana hasn’t had sex in thousands of years.
Nearly all commercial bananas (Cavendish) are sterile clones, making them susceptible to disease due to the lack of genetic diversity...

National environmental reporting has been in the news over recent months with the release of Environment Aotearoa, our second ever national State of the Environment report, and its subsequent review by the Parliamentary...

Many people don’t understand how trees “sequester” carbon. Sometimes they think that any forest will do the job.
The reality is that all plants extract carbon out of the air as their basic food source, but they also put...

While most biodiversity work is in species recovery or restoring rural habitats, at GreenAir we are trying to bring nature back to New Zealand’s cities and offices.
I grew up in the Waitakere Ranges, West of Auckland. The...

Last month I called for a bloody big new forest in New Zealand: 1.3 million hectares by my reckon. Could be more, could be less – but this is the right ballpark for a meaningful reduction to our net greenhouse gas...

Make no mistake; it’s their city too – living with nature in the age of ecological restoration.
If you’re lucky in Wellington these days, you might look up and spy the rufous beauty that is a screeching kākā. Extinct in...

Thinking 500 years into the future can be a scary prospect for an organisation. It means making decisions today to affect a future that you, your grandchildren, their grandchildren and so forth won’t live to see.
We don’t...

Pure Advantage was founded in 2011 on the conviction that New Zealand is in a global race for green growth — and we cannot afford to slip behind.
Since then, not enough has happened—and, in certain respects, things have only...

In the first of a series of profiles of New Zealand businesses using natural resources in a more sustainable way, Kiwibank and Pure Advantage look at seafood pioneer Rachel Taulelei and her mission to change the way we eat...

A backward roll from the tender and I am fully submerged, surrounded by bubbles. Within seconds the bubbles rise to the surface, and I look through the very clear water and I count: one, two, five, nine, twelve, fifteen …...

Radiata pine forests stretch across nearly two million hectares of New Zealand. Many find them dark, monotonous and sterile, but appearances can be deceiving. Native flora and fauna, including endangered and threatened species...

“What you need in business is a significant problem to solve.” So says Chris Rodley, who with his brother Andrew is the brains behind exciting Nelson-based smart camera venture SnapIT (Snap Information Technologies), one of...

In early 2015, the Environmental Defence Society published an account of biodiversity loss in New Zealand and the struggle to curtail it. It showed that present efforts are not nearly enough. The authors argue that the ongoing...

As the world confronts the enormous challenges it faces, people are looking for alternatives to the way things are currently done. Our current social, political and business models, designed for a ‘world without limits’ are...

Can I firstly, applaud the Pure Advantage team for providing a portal for sharing information and inspiration on how New Zealand can retain and improve its green image by unashamedly linking it to the economy and how the country...

If you’re interested in health, you’re probably also interested in whether your food comes from healthy ecosystems.
One of the most important things in a healthy ecosystem is the soil. Overseas, it is becoming more common for...

As one of the World’s leading agricultural producers, farmers of New Zealand have a serious dual responsibility to both customers and the environment. Working hard to keep up with accelerating global demand, they must also...

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About Pure Advantage

Against a gathering storm of population, climate and resource pressures, sustainable living has become an urgent challenge for everyone.

There is, however, a silver lining to this cloud – a growing awareness that environmental sustainability and economic growth are not mutually exclusive, and that significant opportunities await those who meet the challenge with speed, creativity and firmness of purpose.